XXVIII. VICTORIA. corporate towns and places not liable by law to the payment of county rates, but to which the provisions of the Militia Acts in other respects apply, and that it is just that such towns and places should contribute in fair and rateable proportion to the expenses incurred for the efficient maintenance of the militia: enacts that a proportionate part of the expense incurred by the counties subsequently to stat. 15 & 16 Vict. c. 50., passed for amending the law relating to the militia, shall be borne and paid in the manner thereinafter provided by boroughs incorporated under stat. 5 & 6 W. 4. c. 76. &c., not liable to the payment of county rates. And sect. 12 enacts that in order to determine the proportion to be contributed by any such borough to the expenditure for the purposes aforesaid of the county in which such borough is locally situated, the justices of every such county are thereby authorized and required at some General or Quarter Sessions held by them within six calendar months after the passing of the Act, and the council of every such borough are authorized and required at some meeting of the council to be held within three calendar months after the passing of the Act, to appoint respectively two justices of such county and two members of such council, which said four persons shall, as soon as conveniently may be after their appointment, meet together, and shall jointly determine and award the respective proportions in which the said county and borough shall contribute to the expenditure incurred or to be incurred under the recited Acts respectively or the present Act, according to the respective annual values of the property, as rated to the relief of the poor within such borough, and of the property as rated to the relief of the poor and chargeable to the county rate within such county. 1865. WERE V. Clerk of the In pursuance of this statute an award was made, on the 26th October, 1855, by two justices of the county of Devon and two members of the corporation of Bradninch, that the proper proportion in which the county and the borough respectively should contribute to the expenditure for the maintenance of the militia should be as follows, viz., that for each and every 100l. which the county of Devon had contributed since the passing of stat. 15 & 16 Vict. c. 50. or should contribute to such expenditure the borough of Bradninch should contribute the sum of 9s. 4d., and that for every fractional part of 100%. which the county should so contribute the borough should contribute the like fractional part of 9s. 4d. One of the orders made by the Quarter Sessions of the county, in pursuance of this award, on the treasurer of the borough was set out. The borough of Bradninch has for some years past had a police officer appointed by the borough authorities, and wearing a police uniform, in addition to the parish constables and the serjeant at mace, and the general police of the county of Devon has not interfered with it. The questions for the decision of the Court were, Whether the borough, parish, and liberty of Bradninch is liable to contribute to the general county rate for the county of Devon and to the general police rate for the said county, or to either of them. Karslake (Lopes with him), for the respondent.-The questions with respect to the county rate and the police rate depend on the same point. The old statutes relating to the assessing, collecting and levying of county rates are cited in 2 Burn Justice, by Bere and Chitty, County rate," and the law as it existed under stat. 66 XXVIII. VICTORIA. 1865. WERE V. Peace of 55 G. 3. c. 51. s. 1., is stated Id. p. 204; but those statutes were repealed by sect. 1 of stat. 15 & 16 Vict. c. 81., to consolidate and amend the Acts relating to Clerk of the county rates; and by sect. 51 the word "county" shall, in the construction of that Act, mean and include "any liberty, franchise, or other place in which rates in the nature of county rates may be levied, having a separate commission of the peace, and not subject to the jurisdiction of the county or counties at large in which such liberty, franchise, or place may lie, nor contributing or paying to the county rates made for such county or counties at large; and "the words 'county rate' shall mean and include every rate or tax assessed in any county or any division of a county as aforesaid for all or any of the purposes to which county rate or stock is or may hereafter be made liable." In The Mayor &c. of East Looe, appts., The Justices of Cornwall, respts. (a), it was held that the borough of East Looe was within the definition given in that section, and therefore was not liable to be assessed to the rate for the county at large; but the charter of James 2 granted to that borough contained a non-intromittant clause as regards the justices of the county, and there was an express grant to the mayor and recorder and justices of the peace in the borough to hold sessions of the peace. In the charter granted to the borough of Bradninch there is not a nonintromittant clause,-there is only a clause constituting the mayor and recorder justices of the peace, and giving them power to inquire concerning trespasses, misprisions, and other minor offences;" it is a question whether they could hold Sessions of the peace. [Blackburn J. How could they inquire, except by summoning a jury? (a) 3 B. & S. 20. VOL. VI. C B. & S. 1865. WERE v. Clerk of the Crompton J. It is usual for such a charter to contain two commissions or a commission consisting of two parts, one constituting certain persons keepers of the peace, another giving them power to hold Sessions and defining their power in Sessions. Blackburn J. The one authority is to be exercised on all occasions and by all, the other only by those who are of the quorum. [He referred to the form of the commission of the peace in Dalton Country Justice, ch. 5, pp. 12, 13, and 3 Burn Justice, by Bere and Chitty, p. 988.] The justices of the county may go into the borough and try felonies there, so that they have at least concurrent jurisdiction; and if the justices of the borough have not a separate commission of the peace it is liable to be assessed to the county rate. As to the police rate. In Reg. v. The Overseers of Lackmanstone (a), it was held that the liberty or district of Romney Marsh, incorporated by a charter of James 1, though it had a separate Court of Quarter Sessions, was liable to the police rate as forming part of the county of Kent under stats. 2 & 3 Vict. c. 93. s. 27. and 3 & 4 Vict. c. 88. s. 3. The fact that the county police have not interfered with the borough of Bradninch does not shew that it is not liable to the police rate. Coleridge (Kingdon with him).-Stat. 15 & 16 Vict. c. 81. s. 21. empowers the justices of the county to assess to the county rate every parish, township, and other place "within the respective limits of their commissions." It is true the charter granted to the borough of Bradninch does not contain a commission (a) 2 L. T. N. S. 215. XXVIII. VICTORIA. to hold Sessions of the peace nor a non-intromittant clause; but the facts found are equivalent to those in 1865. WERE The Mayor &c. of East Looe, appts., The Justices of Clerk of the Cornwall, respts. (a). [Cockburn C. J. There is this material difference: in that case the jurisdiction of the county justices was excluded: in this it is not. Crompton J. Here the case cannot be put higher than that the borough justices have concurrent jurisdiction with the county justices.] The facts found are evidence of exclusive jurisdiction in the borough justices within the borough the inquisition in the 4 Edw. 1 shews that the borough had a gallows, and therefore under some old charter jurisdiction over capital offences. [Crompton J. I doubt whether that follows. This appears to have been an old lordship which escheated into the hands of King Hen. 3, and he granted it to the Earl of Cornwall. I should say that this was a manorial not a borough privilege, there may have been a right to call upon the lord of the manor to hang persons who had committed a capital offence within the borough.] The inquisition in the reign of Edw. 1 is headed "Borough of Braneys," and in the charter of James 1 it is called "our borough of Bradneys." The borough also had jurisdiction to try estreats of writs and pleas of withernam, which must have reference to actions of replevin; and this shews that the sheriff of the county had no jurisdiction over goods distrained within the borough. [Blackburn J. Though the borough had cognizance of such pleas another tribunal also might have cognizance of them. "A grant tenere placita, gives jurisdiction, but not exclusive of other Courts. If there be no negative words;" Com. Dig. Courts (P 1.) Therefore a (a) 3 B. & S. 20. Peace of |